Sunday, 2/2/2014 to Saturday, 2/8/2014 - Freezeroo #5

I ran 5 times this week, 31.97 miles.

Sunday, 2/2/2014: 7 miles, 58:14, 8:18 pace, 32F, 81% RH, wind chill 25F, overcast.

Garmin Connect Activity for 7 miles on icy roads of Irondequoit

I got out a bit early on Sunday morning. I found the shoulder of Seneca Ave OK but a bit icy whenever I crossed a side street. Then I turned left onto Scofield Rd ... and found ice. Lots of ice. I didn't expect ice so I had on my road shoes with no traction. I skated over to Saint Paul St and knew that I was going to have to make up a different route. So I looped around back to Seneca Ave and just went up and down to Titus Ave twice to get some speed and miles. My splits were: 8:13, 9:23, 8:33, 8:10, 8:03, 8:08 and 7:45. Kind of boring going up and Seneca Ave! But a run is a run!

After a quick shower I was out and about. First was a trip to Fleet Feet Armory to check out the new store! Wow ... it's huge! I got the nickel tour from Barb, the GM, along with Krista and her husband. As the car commercials say ... it's HUGE!

The new Fleet Feet Armory at 155 Culver Rd

Boot's badass truck!

His and her offices

Ellen and Boots at their wedding on 2/1/2003

Ellen and Boots 11 years later!

Next up was a quick trip out to Lyons and Newark to see my father and kids. I saw the father at the Wayne County Nursing Home in Lyons at 2 PM. He was falling asleep already and didn't recognize me. Kind of depressing. My kids and I caught up on events in our lives.

Soon I was back up in Rochester ... just in time to watch the Super Bowl. Or ... the Super Bore as Seattle absolutely pounded Denver, 43-8, link here. The commercials were more exciting, link here.

Monday, 2/3/2014: Rest day.

Yes, I watched "Sports Illustrated Swimsuit: 50 Years of Beautiful". It was nice with lots of SI swimsuit models ... and loaded with lots of commercials. Their top three covers: Tyra Banks (#3), Kate Upton (#2) and from 1989 - Kathy Ireland (#1), link here.

Tuesday, 2/4/2014: 9.3 miles, 1:15:10, 8:04 pace, 25F, dark, overcast, calm.

Garmin Connect Activity for 15K out on the streets of Irondequoit

It was Tuesday night so it was a run night. I was unsure about the road conditions so I wore my trail shoes. I was also unsure of the side street conditions so I was up for creating a new route. Well .. I got about 100 yards down Schofield Rd and encountered the same ice that I found on Sunday so I just turned carefully around and ran back to Seneca Ave. I did note that the left inside of the right knee hurt a bit for a couple of My new route was sticking to the shoulders and sidewalks of the main streets which were 95% clear. I kept up my pace and ran kind of fast. My splits were: 7:58, 8:36, 8:16, 7:52, 8:19, 8:15, 7:58, 7:55, 7:48 and 7:27 over the last 0.3 mile.

Wednesday, 2/5/2014: Rest day.

A foot of snow fell during the day. I slid our car home and was glad to there. My darling Christine and I cocooned the rest of the night. Meanwhile, 176 runners were down at Cobbs Hill for Snow Cheap #4, links here and here. As I say, runners run, no matter the weather!

Thursday, 2/6/2014: 6.6 miles, 56:09, 8:30 pace, 18F, overcast, dark, 61% RH, wind chill 5F

Garmin Connect Activity for 6.6 miles out to the Zoo and 3 times around the pond

It was Thursday night so it was a run night. Again I was unsure of the road conditions so I wore my trail shoes. I even tried out some traction that I bought at BJ's. The road surface on the main streets was bare and the side streets was plowed down to a scraped snow cover so I don't know if I needed my added traction. After running in the traction device I am not a real fan ... you can definitely feel that you are running on spikes. Though if there were real ice underfoot I am sure that I would be a real fan of not falling.

Anyway, I changed up my route again. I headed out to the Seneca Park Zoo and ran 3 times around the pond. I knew that this would provide me with about a 6.5 mile run. I noted that the gate down to the pond was closed as I went around it. I knew it would be quiet down there.

As I was heading down to the pond I saw about a dozen headlamps coming toward me; 2 from the left and the others from the right at the fork. I waved at the large group and headed left. One of the left runners yelled out as I approached: "That must be Doug DeWeaver, I recognize his gait!" I puzzled over this the rest of the run ... do I have a recognizable gait? My darling Christine says I do.

When I got back at the apartment I found that I had a bloody nose. I stretched outside at our car and found that I dripped blood onto my keys, glove and jacket. I went in and yelled to Christine as soon as I got in the door for Kleenex and laid right down. It's weird ... I haven't had a bloody nose after running ever. Christine promptly soaked my jacket in cold water and got out the blood.

Friday, 2/7/2014: Rest day ... plus 3 loads of laundry.

Saturday, 2/8/2014: 2 runs of 1 and 8.07 miles, 9F, 61% RH, 9 mph WSW, wind chill -5F, sunny.

It's a Freezeroo Saturday morning so ... off I went. Yes, it was cold. It was 0F with a -10F wind chill at 8:15AM. I just wore more layers ... but not too many. I didn't want to overheat. It's a fine art to knowing what to wear on race mornings. It all depends on how fast you run, how long you are going to run and what the weather conditions are before, during and after the run. I chose a light base layer, my heavy tech long shirt and my Brook Racing Team short sleeve tech shirt along with my usual CW-X, Darn Tough socks, Brooks beanie, balaclava and heavy gloves. I brought along a Hothands hand warmer too (they do help!).

I got out to the Greece DPW building, the shelter for Freezeroo #5, around 9:10AM. This race was 8 miles. It heads up Long Pond to Janes Rd to Island Cottage Rd to Edgemere Drive and back down Long Pond.

I got out for a mile warmup run, 9:28 pace. I was trying to get to 1.0 mile on my Garmin in the parking lot. I was almost there when I went around a van, went into the shade, encountered ice, slipped and went down on my left side in a heap. Ouch! I got up, made sure all my body parts still moved, winced and continued onward to get my mile. Only ten minutes to race time so I was unsure about how well I would run.

Garmin Connect Activity for Warmup before Freezeroo #5


I met up with the usual people before the start of the race: Mark Herberger, Prem Kumar, Erik Julliani and Bill Beyerbach. The race started like hundreds of others ... "Go!".

Milling around before the start

I'm in the frame from 1:58 to 2:05.
I got up to speed and found that I was running just fine despite the fall on my left hip. The wind was at our back for the start. I ran beside Erik for about a mile before I sped up. I stretched out and gobbled up the course. Mark Herberger passed me at mile 3. The wind was on our left as we hit Edgemere Drive so it wasn't too bad. I was slowing down but still plugging. The wind was in our face as we headed down Long Pond toward the finish. Heather Danielson said "Hi" as she passed me at mile 7. I knew the finish was close so I tried to bring it in hard. My splits were: 6:49, 7:08, 7:11, 7:18, 7:32, 7:54, 7:39 and 7:34. I noticed that the time was sub 1 hour as I got in, 59:29! Wow, a course PR by 12 seconds!

Mark Herberget on his way to 59:01.

Heather Danielson on her way to 59:18

I'm cruising in to a 59:29.

Prem Kumar on his way to a 1:04:08

Erik Julliani on his way to a 1:04:35.

Wilt Alston on his way to a 1:04:53

Bill Beyerbach on his way to a 1:12:50.

The shirtless Tom Butler on his way to a 1:19:43.

80 year old Charlie Sabatine on his way to a 1:28:42. I want to be like Charlie when I grow up!

I did pretty well. Mark finished in 59:01, Heather in 59:18, Prem in 1:04:08, Erik in 1:04:35 and Bill in 1:12:50. I said "Hi" to the shirtless Tom Butler, who was readjusting his shirt at mile 7.5, and Charlie Sabatine as I passed them. I finished 47th out of 174, link here. I was 4th out of 16 in my M 55-59 age group. A good day for all!

I headed home for my customary coffee and bagel with my darling wife, Christine. Soon we were dressed (change of clothes for me), packed and ready to head back out. We were off to Buffalo for my company's Employee Appreciation Dinner at the Millennium Hotel. I wanted to leave at 3PM but was happy to leave when Christine was ready at 4:15PM. We still got there before 6PM. We are definitely not party people ... we headed up to our room when the music got loud though we did do dessert and the photo booth.

The dual selfie before the party

One thing about our hotel room ... it was huge! It must have been 30' x 30'! We didn't even get around to sitting in any of the leather chairs, the table or the desk.

A nice comfy king size awaited us.

A view of the pool was behind the curtain.

Nice, comfy leather couch

The ballon was a leftover from a previous guest.

I also found that my left hip started to show a nice bruise after my fall in the morning. My left arm and wrist are also started to ache. 

My left hip looks a lot worse than it feels

Update: 4 days later, 4" x 3" ... nice!

But ... Ice and falls sometimes happen.

But meanwhile back in Rochester, the Cast A Shadow snowshoe race was held from 2PM to 8PM, link here. You could solo snowshoe for 6 hours or be part of 3 person team for 2 hours each. Maybe next year!

Sunday, 1/26/2014 to Saturday, 2/1/2014

I ran 3 times for 27.8 miles this week.

Sunday, 1/26/2014: 8 miles, 1:07:15, 8:24 pace, 9F, 61% RH, wind chill -9F, sunny.

Today was my darling Christine's 56th birthday. I got up around 8AM and let Christine sleep. I dilly-dallied for 2 hours before I got up the gumption to get out in the cold sunlight.

Garmin Connect Activity for 8 miles in the cold sun around the neighborhood

I put on most of my cold weather gear like usual plus my sunglasses since it was so sunny. I took it nice and easy on my usual 10K route. The shoulders of the main streets were slushy from the "warm" sun while the side streets and sidewalks were mostly snow covered. I added another mile by heading down Chapel Hill Drive. Practically no one was out except for people shoveling. I did see a female runner on Cooper Rd by Saint Paul St. My splits were: 8:33, 8:24, 8:16, 8:49, 8:24, 8:26, 8:15 and 8:06. I was more than ready to stop by the time 8 miles was up.

I awoke my darling Christine when I got home. I gave her more birthday presents: a White Shoulders perfume gift set and a pair of garnet dangle earrings made by Heather Danielson. We cocooned for a long time before we headed out to eat at the East Ridge Diner for dinner and then to Wegmans for a few supplies. We both were stuffed after dinner. I had 3 raisin pancakes, 4 pieces of bacon and a chocolate milk shake ... mmm!

Monday, 1/27/2014 to Wednesday, 1/29/2014: Rest day, cold day, colder day.

Monday was a true rest day.

Tuesday could have been a run night but was a stay in night for me with wind chills below zero.

Wednesday was another stay in night for me at least, It was even windier with wind chills well below zero. Yes, other runners with more moxie went out even on Wednesday, the night that Fleet Feet Brighton closed for the last time. I would have loved to be there for the final run and to hear Ellen's speech but I got out of work late. The "Thank you Brighton" entry in the Democrat and Chronicle Fleet Feet blog, link here. Some Facebook pics ...

Fleet Feet Brighton - 7/15/2004 to 1/29/2014

Ellen

Bye - bye!

Thursday, 1/30/2014: 10 miles, 1:23:00, 8:18 pace, 30F, 31% RH, wind chill 24F.

Garmin Connect Activity for 10 miles in the balmy cold of Irondequoit

It actually warmed up during the day! I had to get out after 4 days off. I told my darling Christine that I was going out for a "longish" run. So out I went with only one long sleeve tech inside of two. I struck up a nice and easy pace and just headed out. The main streets were clear, the side streets were mostly snow covered and the sidewalks were almost clear. I ran faster when I had clear road and slower when I didn't but run I did and I enjoyed it. My splits were: 8:09, 8:27, 8:39, 8:09, 8:13, 8:24, 8:23, 8:20, 8:08, 8:05. You can see where I was running on the snow covered side streets with the slower splits. Still, it was a very nice run.

Friday, 1/31/2014: Rest day ... moving along.

I ran 20 times for 122.8 miles in January, 6.1 miles/run. (3 were warmups of 3.35 miles, 2 were cooldowns for 2.7 miles) Take that Polar Vortex! I did make judicious use of rest days during the month though. I didn't run for four days three times during January.

Friday, 1/31/2014: Rest day ... moving along.

Saturday, 2/1/2014: 9.8 miles, 1:19:24, 8:06 pace, 32F, overcast, calm.

Garmin Connect Activity for 9.8 miles in the balmy overcast of Irondequoit

The new Fleet Feet Armory store this morning at 9AM. Lots of people showed up ... but not me. I didn't wake up until 8:45AM. Some events that I missed, link here. More Facebook pics ...

Free coffee and hot chocolate!

The ribbon cutting.

Fleet Feet Armory open for business!

I dilly-dallied like usual but I did get out around 10:30AM. The roads were pretty good. Some of the side streets were still snow covered which slowed me down some. But I did try to kick up the pace when I could. My splits were: 7:49, 8:13, 8:22, 8:14, 7:54, 8:15, 8:15, 7:54, 7:56 and 8:10 over the last 0.8 miles.

I read about other runners on Facebook. Some did 20, some ran around the Bay for 15 and some rode around the By for 20. You gotta say ... some runners run and some bicyclists bike outside when other people stay inside.

Sunday, 1/19/2014 to Saturday, 1/25/2014 - Freezeroo #4

I ran 6 times this week, 25.14 miles (1 warmup and 1 cooldown).

Sunday, 1/19/2014: 2 runs of 5.7 and 5 miles, 25F, 59% RH, wind chill 11F, overcast.

I didn't hesitate as much this morning before heading out around 10:30AM. I dressed with a lighter long sleeve tech since it was a bit warmer and with my sunglasses to keep the wind out of my eyes a bit.

Garmin Connect Activity for Down to the lake

I headed out on my usual 10K course and just up and decided to stretch it north to the lake. I hadn't run there in a while. The shoulders of the main streets were clear while the side streets and sidewalks were better but still mostly snow covered. The wind didn't really bother me since I was mostly going downwind as well as downhill. My splits were: 8;30, 8:19, 8:17, 8:12, 7:42 and 7:50 over the last 0.7 miles. I took a couple pictures at the lake while I walked on the beach and rested a couple of minutes like usual.

Just chilling out down at Lake Ontario

Garmin Connect Activity for Back from the lake

I took the direct route back from the lake. I was going uphill and into the wind so I was a bit slower. The wind really caught me on Titus Ave at one point so I felt I was running in place. It was a bit chilly but I didn't walk. I knew that I would be warm soon enough. My splits were: 8:51, 8:35, 8:36, 8:33 and 8:24. Soon coffee was brewing ... ahhh!

Later, my darling Christine and I were watching the NFL Conference Finals games. The first game was the New England Patriots versus the Denver Broncos out in Denver. Not much of a game, Denver carved them up 26-16, link here. The second game was the San Francisco 49ers versus the Seattle Seahawks. A more exciting game, Seattle won 23-17, link here. I'll be rooting for Denver.

Oh, I opened my Masterlock gym lock! The back story is that I have had that combination lock for over 20 years and always managed to remember the combination. Well ... the last time I had opened it was over two years ago. I wanted to use it the day before when Christine and I wanted to go to LA Fitness (but didn't) to lock up our stuff. Well ... I couldn't remember the combination. I knew a couple of the numbers. I tried various combinations but nothing worked. My darling Christine was patient and even looked up the FAQ on Masterlock, link here. They will send you the combination for a lock if you get a notarized picture of the serial number, it isn't locked to anything and you want to wait 6-8 weeks. Well, the combination just came to me and voila! I wrote down the combination in a couple of locations this time!

Monday, 1/20/2014 to Wednesday, 1/22/2014: Rest days all.

Yes, it got cold ... and yes, I stayed inside. Monday was a true rest day after two days of running so it truly counts as a rest day. The temperature fell by Tuesday night to 7F and the high on Wednesday was 6F. I probably could have gone out since there was almost no wind to bring the wind chill down. I should have gone out Wednesday night ... I was such a wuss!

A rare triple sun dog!

One thing ... it was really cold and sunny on Wednesday morning. Everyone who looked outside and drove in it got to see a sun dog, local link here and wiki link here!

Thursday, 1/23/2014: 6.2 miles, 53:28, 8:36 pace, 9F, 72% RH, wind chill -5F, dark, light snow.

Garmin Connect Activity for 10K out in the cold

I told myself that I needed to run. I told my wife that I needed to run. I told other people that I needed to run. I eCrumbed my wife and my kids when I started to let them know my route in case I froze out running (just kidding about the freezing). Yes, I did dilly-dally. Yes, I put on two long sleeve tech shirts (1 heavy and 1 light), Brooks Nightlife jacket, CW-X tights, GRTC shorts, Damn Tuff socks, Brooks beanie, balaclava, facemask and heavy gloves. I even put in a set of Hothands handwarmers into my heavy gloves. It took a while to get dressed to run. I stepped out ... and it wasn't that bad. Ok ... my face from my forehead to mouth was a bit cold since it was about the only thing that wasn't covered. But that really was only when I was going into the wind. The shoulders of the main streets were OK but just a bit slippery while the sidestreets and sidewalks were snow covered. I took it nice and easy on my usual 10K route. I saw one other runner on Titus Ave and Sean Hendrick saw me on his way home as I turned back onto Seneca Ave. All in all, a good run. My splits were: 8:38, 8:39, 8:21, 8:35, 8:52, 8:39 and 8:28 over the last 0.2 miles. I was glad I went out.

Just a bit chilly out!

Friday, 1/24/2014: Rest day.

A couple of birthday gifts for my darling Christine came today: an ottoman for the couch and a pair of blue fleece leggings for her legs.

Saturday, 1/25/2014: 3 runs of 1.1, 6.44 and 0.7 miles, 21F, 68% RH, wind chill 10F, overcast.

A Freezeroo Saturday morning: up at 7:15AM, get ready and out the door by 8:40AM to get there in plenty of time for the 10AM start. Freezeroo #4 (aka Hearnish 10K) was held out in the Powdermill Park area of Pittsford. It's a tough and hilly course with 445 feet of elevation gain. This was my fourth time running this race.

Garmin Connect Activity for Warmup before Freezeroo #4
I got out for a 1.1 mile warmup run at 8:48 pace, just nice and easy.

I walked the 1/4 mile to the start rather than run it. I milled around waiting for the start and exchanged greetings with Bill Beyerbach, Mark Herberger and Prem Kumar. The usual fast runners were wearing shorts and tank tops ... they know who they were! Me ... I was wearing tights, heavy long sleeve tech, Brooks Racing Team tech, Brooks Nightlife jacket, beanie, balaclava and heavy running gloves.


The race started and I got up to race pace quickly. It was cold and windy but not so bad.

Milling around before the start.

Running down Park Rd with Prem soon after the start.

Another shot of running down Park Rd soon after the start.

I'm in the frame from 1:26 to 1:31.
The first mile on Park Rd was done in 7:14. The gradual hill at mile 2 on East St into the wind was not so good as I took 3 tiny walks to get up it. The downs were appreciated and the ups were endured. The road was snow covered for a little stretch on Probst Rd. The short hill on Miles Cutting Lane was mercifully short. The steep and windy hill on Railroad Mills Rd at mile 4.6 was just as steep as last year. I took 2 tiny walks and then slowed my running down a bit to get up it. Once I got to the top I knew that I only had 1.6 miles to go. Time to stretch out the legs!

Other runners were on the course! I saw one cross about 50 yards in front of me.

I think we are turning toward the finish. I know I didn't unzip my jacket until mile 5.

My legs wanted to stop but I kept going. The downs on Fishers Rd and Woolston Rd were really appreciated as I cut the tangents. I saw the mile 6 marker on Corduroy Rd and kicked it up a bit. I finished in 50:43. My splits were: 7:14, 8:25, 8:08, 7:39, 8:48, 7:31 and 6.42 over the last 0.44 miles.

Garmin Connect Activity for Cooldown after Freezeroo #4
I got right out for a 0.7 mile cooldown run at 8:24 pace.

I warmed up in the Rand Lodge afterward and changed into a dry long sleeve tech when I got chilled. I swapped race stories with Mark, Prem and Bill. Mark finished ahead of me in 47:57 to take 1st in my M55-59 age group, Prem in 54:38 and Bill didn't (?) have a finishing time. I did OK. I was 54th out of 183, link here. I was 2nd out of 11 in my M55-59 age group.

Later I headed back into the cold and snow for the GRTC Annual Awards Banquet. I sat with Tom Butler and his wife, Bill Beyerbach, Patrick Wrobel, Tony Gingello and someone else who I had seen but didn't get his name.

Our table: me, Amy, Tom, Bill, Pat, Tony and ?

Mike Viterise - 3rd, me - 2nd and Bill - 1st in the M 55-59 age group in 2013 Rochester Runner of the Year (best 6 out of 12)

Our table picked up some awards. I took the gold GRTC running patch and 2nd in my M55-59 AG, Tom took the gold GRTC running patch and the Consistent Runners Award, Bill took the gold GRTC running patch and 1st in my M55-59 AG, Patrick took 1st in his M50-54 AG and Tony took 3rd in his M65-59 AG.

Mike Viterise - 3rd, me - 2nd and Bill - 1st in the M 55-59 age group in the 2013 Rochester Runner of the Year (best 6 out of 12 races)

I enjoyed hearing the running stories of the GRTC Hall of Fame inductees: Audra Naujokas-Knapp and Tom Lamme.

Sunday, 1/12/2014 to Saturday, 1/18/2014

I ran 3 times this week, 30.1 miles.

Sunday, 1/12/2014: Rest day

I just didn't feel it today since we were up late Saturday night. During the last week I had configured a spare laptop with XP so I could copy DVDs. I used my 3 pieces of software plus a bit of head scratching when I couldn't user Nero to burn a DVD (thank you oldversion.com for version 6.6.1.4) to make a backup copy of "Les Miserables". PM me if any readers want to know how.

First, Christine and I had some coffee and read a bit of the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. I headed down to Wayne County to see my children and my father. First, I saw my youngest son, David, at Finger Lakes Gaming for brunch. Second, I saw my daughter, Karen, in Newark. She and I commiserated about her cat, Bobo, who has cancer in its jaw. The cat was borne almost 15 years ago on my ex's and my bed (unbeknownst to me for years). Third, I saw my oldest son, Michael, in Newark. We talked of generalities but not too many specifics. Last, I went over to the Wayne County Nursing Home in Lyons to see my father ... but he was asleep already at 7:15PM.

Some runners I knew completed Walt Disney's Dopey's Challenge (a 5K, 10K, Half and Full on consecutive days or Goofy's Challenge (Half and Full on consecutive days), link here.

Beth Springar's 6 medals after completing the Dopey Challenge from 1/9 to 1/12.

Monday, 1/13/2014: Rest day.

Another one of those "woulda, shoulda but didn't" days ... I just didn't feel it. Tomorrow, I will.

Tuesday, 1/14/2014: 12 miles, 1:37:26, 8:07 pace, 37F, 69% RH, dark, partly cloudy, light breeze.

Garmin Connect Activity for 12 miles around the neighborhood

I knew I needed to get out for a run ... and I did. I was a bit on the fence about wearing my Brooks Nightlife jacket or vest. I chose the jacket but could have worn the vest. I took a bit above nice and easy since the roads and sidewalks were clear. I went down Chapel Hill Drive, looped on Titus back to Winona Blvd and did Chapel Hill Drive. I merely slowed when I got up the hill on Chapel Hill Drive and didn't stop to walk as much as I wanted to. My splits were: 7:56, 8:01, 7:53, 8:00, 8:13, 8:01, 8:02, 7:57, 8:34, 8:13, 8:17 and 8:17. I felt good about this run. The miles just clicked along ... sweet!

Wednesday, 1/15/2014: Rest day ... moving along! My thighs did ache a bit during the day though.

Thursday, 1/16/2014: 9.6 miles, 1:16:14, 7:56 pace, 30F, 59% RH, wind chill 24F, dark, partly cloudy.

Garmin Connect Activity for 9.6 miles around the neightborhood

A day off ... time to run again. I dilly-dallied on the couch but escaped its clutches, got up and out. I told my darling Christine that I was going to go short and take it nice and easy ... not! I started out at what I thought was a slow pace ... not!. I stayed on my flat 10K route with a loop back onto Winona Blvd to add 3.4 miles. Well ... here are my splits: 7:45, 7:50, 7:42, 7:39, 7:48, 8:00, 8:34, 8:08 and 8:29 over the last 0.6 miles. I did have a problem at mile 6.6. My thighs tightened and I slowed to greater than 8:00 pace. I stopped for a little at mile 7.6 to rub them. When I got back I used my roller to rub them which was a bit painful ... but in a good way.

Christine cooked up a pizza for supper. We watched "Iron Man 3" from Redbox for the evenings entertainment. Not a bad action flick ... as usual the CGI was a bit unbelievable.

Friday, 1/17/2014: Rest day.

Sadly I thought out that my youngest son, David, was fired from his Cash Office/Money Room Supervisor job at Finger Lakes Gaming. It seemed that he was supervising a trainee who made a mistake that he didn't catch. He was fired which ... sucks!

It was opening night for the move "Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit" I had 2 tickets for $5 each that I bought from corporateperks.com ... so we used them for date night! The movie was a pretty good action flick. We both thought that Keira Knightly who played Kate Ryan was badly dressed in her little black dress scene though.

Saturday, 1/18/2014: 8.5 miles, 1:13:31, 8:39 pace, 21F, 69% RH, wind chill 8F, partly cloudy

Garmin Connect Activity for 8,5 miles around the neighborhood

I got up around 7:45AM and saw that it was cold and windy. I dilly-dallied around for a long while looking at my email and Facebook. But ... I'm a runner and needed my run. So I got up and out around 11:30AM. I wore my coldest weather gear and took it nice and easy on my usual 10K route. The shoulders of the main streets were slushy but runnable while the side streets and sidewalks were snow covered. I was warmed enough to take down my balaclava at mile 2.5. It was cold heading into the wind for sure but not too bad. I saw 4 other runners during my run which was unusual. I added on some miles to get about 30 miles for the week.

While I was running I thought of Meg Menzies, link here, who was killed while running by a drunk driver. I also thought of the ultrasunners who were running the Beast of Burden out in Lockport, link here.

The tread pattern from a pair of Salomon Speedcross

My darling Christine put on her bathing suit to get ready to go to LA Fitness. I was just done with my run so I begged off for a while. Christine had a headache by the time I felt ready to go ... so it was a dress rehearsal for tomorrow I hope. I was sorry that I botched up her plans.

Sunday, 1/5/2014 to Saturday, 1/11/2014 - Freezeroo #3

I ran 6 times this week, 31.8 miles (1 was a warmup of 0.5 and 2 were cooldowns of 2 and 5).

Sunday, 1/5/2014: 10 miles, 1:25:38, 8:33 pace, 28F, 50% RH, partly cloudy, calm.

Garmin Connect Activity for 10 miles around the neighborhood

I woke up at 5:39 AM for some reason and couldn't go back to sleep. What to do? Go out for a run, of course! I was out the door almost exactly a hour later. It was still dark so I had my headlamp on. I took it nice and easy. I found the main streets of Seneca Ave and Cooper Rd had clear shoulders, the side streets were snow covered and the sidewalks of Cooper Rd and Titus Ave were slushy. I ran my usual 10K route plus another mini loop to get to double digits. My darling Christine was awake when I got back ... she wasn't worried since she had noticed that my running clothes were missing.

Later I headed out to Greg's house so he could look at our car's right taillight. He pried out the old bulb, put in a bulb that he had and put red tape over the opening so I could drive around until we get it fixed. We do have collision with a $500 deductible .... which I am so looking forward to paying for damage someone else doesn't have the balls to admit to causing.

Monday, 1/6/2014: Rest day.

The temperature dropped during the day. It was 44F when I got up around 6AM and by the time I went to bed it was 8F. Yes, some runners did go out from Fleet Feet Ridgeway for the 6PM fun run.

My darling Christine was a dear when she got a gallon of milk on her way home from her therapist appointment out in Webster. We did wear more clothing than usual when we usually do when we went to bed ... brrrrr!

Tuesday, 1/7/2014: Too cold to run day.

It was really too cold to run today. The high for the day was 5F with wind chills in the -20F range. I did have to travel between buildings today so I was outside numerous times. It was brutal ... but I just bundled up and got it done.

A sign from Hell, Michigan ... but equally appropriate for Rochester NY

I thought about running after work and felt like a wuss. But I was a warm and safe wuss with my feet up. There will be other days and nights to run.

Wednesday, 1/8/2014: Coulda, shoulda but didn't day

I could have headed down to Cobbs Hill to run Snow Cheap #2 or I could have headed out and done my usual 10K route around the neighborhood. But ... I put my feet up and drank a mug of hot chocolate instead.  My darling Christine and I did spend some quality time catching up though .. which is always good!

Thursday, 1/9/2014: 9.3 miles, 1:17:16, 8:18 pace, 21F, night, partly cloudy, wind chill 12F.

Garmin Connect Activity for 15K around the neighborhood

It finally warmed up enough to get out and run! So ... out I went. Yes, I dilly-dallied but I did get out. I took my usual 10K route and then added more. I don't particularly like this "more" route so I won't do it again. An easier way to add 3.1 miles is to simply go down Titus Ave all the way to Winona Blvd and turn right to loop again, or to add 1.1 miles go down Chapel Hill Drive to get a little bit of hill action, or do both!

Friday, 1/10/2014: Rest day ... just like usual the day before Freezeroo #3.

The weather warmed up! It's amazing how 40F feels warm when you're toughened up by sub 10F with below zero wind chills!

Saturday: 1/11/2014: 4 runs of 0.5, 5 (Freezeroo #3), 2 and 5, overcast, 48F, 87% RH, light wind and rain most of the time.

I got up early. My darling Christine decided to stay home so I got up, got ready and out the door to head to Spencerport for Freezeroo #3. I got there in plenty of time ... for it to start a light to heavy rain. I waited inside with Prem.

Strava for 1/11/2014 Spencerport NY - Warmup before Freezeroo #3

I headed out for a warmup run of 0.5 miles, 8;37 pace. It was long enough for me to decide to shed my Brooks Nightlife jacket. I decided to run in tights, long sleeve tech, Brooks Racing team tech, heavy gloves and beanie. I felt overdressed next to Mark Herberger who wore racing flats with no socks, shorts and a singlet.

The start ... I'm up towards the front.

The race started and I stuck close to Mark ... for the first mile. Prem said "Hi" as he went by.


This video is about a mile in, I appear from 1:50 ti 2:05
I had a bit of trouble in mile 4. I stopped twice for a itty-bitty walk break to catch my breath. I can run fine at 8:15 or so pace but have a bit of trouble at race pace. I got back up to speed and finished in 37:04, 7:25 pace. My splits were 6:59, 7:19, 7:30, 7:42 and 7:27. Mark finished in 35:21 and Prem finished in 36:26. I finished 49th out of 224, link here. I was 2nd out of 22 (behind Mark) in my M55-59 age group, link here.

I saw Heather Danielson, who won her AG, heading out for a post run. She had run 5 before, the 5 mile race in 37:27 and she said that she needed 2 more. I tagged along and we ran a nice and easy 2 miles at 8:29 pace together.

Strava for 1/11/2014 Spencerport NY - Cooldown after Freezeroo #3

Then I headed to my car ... and found that I didn't have my key. I told Wilt Alston in the lodge, wolfed down 2 pieces of pizza and then headed out to rerun the race course to look for my key, 10:25 pace. I had to run slower plus I was getting a bit tired.

Strava for 1/11/2014 Spencerport NY - Rerun of Freezeroo #4

Wilt called me to say that no one had turned in my key. I asked if he could take me home. He was already heading home but looped back to take me home. Thank you, Wilt! Christine was a bit surprised to see me without all my gear. I called Bill Beyerbach and asked him to take me out to retrieve our car. It ended up but be not once but twice ... since I forgot to take Christine's key the first time. Bill and I got a chuckle out of all this ... he is just a good friend to not take it out on me for all the driving. Thank you, Bill! Once we got to my car with a key to open it I quickly found that I had left my key inside the locked car. So ... I ended up running 12.5 miles, being embarrassed by losing my key and getting help from two running friends. Thank you again, Wilt and Bill!

Christine was happy to see me when I got home. Lots of sitting with my legs up and watching 2 DVRed football games soon ensued. I was a bit tired.

Sunday, 12/29/2013 to Saturday, 1/4/2014 - Freezeroo #2

I ran 4 times this week, 24.5 miles
I ran 18 times in 31 days during December 2013, 107.24 miles, 5.8 miles/run.
2013: I ran 225 times, 1310.6 miles, 6.0 miles/run

Sunday, 12/29/2013: Rest day.

I was torn about running today. I had to get up a bit early so I could meet up with a friend who replaced the front pads and rotors on our reliable Chevy Cavalier. Greg wanted to do it when it was 45F. The weather forecast was for a lot colder weather to move in the rest of the week.

My darling Christine and I did make it out for some grocery shopping at Wegmans. I didn't know that Sunday afternoon shopping was so aggressive ... people didn't seem to care if you moved aside or not. We were glad to get out of there in one piece. We did have a very yummy supper of roaster chicken, rice and lima beans. Everything was perfect! My darling Christine can cook quite well!

Monday, 12/30/2013: 7.5 miles, 1:00:21, 8:03 pace, 16F, dark, partly cloudy, a slight breeze.

Garmin Connect Activity for 7.5 miles around the neighborhood

Yes, I could have very easily stayed inside where it was nice and warm. Yes, the couch was comfy. But ... I needed 0.26 miles to get above 100 miles for December so out I went. It was 16F so I dressed warmly with a pair of shorts over my tights and a short sleeve tech over my heaviest long sleeve tech. I took it a bit slow then sped up. The main streets were clear and the side streets were covered with about 1/2 inch of snow so there was pretty good footing ... I had worn my trail shoes anyway so I had no trouble. I warmed up after 1 mile and was a bit too hot after 3.5 miles. I lowered my balaclava to cool off a little. My splits were: 8:27, 8:17, 8:00, 8:04, 7:59, 8:07, 7:47 and 7:18 over the last 0.5 mile. Not too bad! The forecast for later part of the week is even colder ... so this run may be a "warm" one ... nice!

Tuesday, 12/31/2013: Rest day.

My darling Christine and I were a bit off today. We were just a bit cranky with each other. In retrospect I should have headed out solo to Cobbs Hill to watch the Rochester fireworks at 10 PM with some of the RFP group. We missed the ball dropping at midnight and just went to bed. Hopefully next year we will do something for New Year's Eve.

Wednesday, 1/1/2014: 2 runs of 1.75 and Freezeroo #2, 7.55 miles

Yes, it was 16F and it was cold. But a Freezeroo was being held so out I went. I arrived down at Mendon Ponds Park around 9 AM ... plenty of time to spare. I met up with Prem and chatted for a bit while we waited for the race. The temp was 16F, 78% RH, sunny. But ... I headed out for my 1.75 warmup run without looking at my watch to see how time I had before the race. So I finished my warmup run 30 seconds before the race started.

Garmin Connect Activity for Warmup before Freezeroo #2

I lined up pretty close to the start on the right hand side like usual.

I'm in the frame from 1:04 to 1:21
I started out well in 7:16 pace. But I had a bit of trouble with my breathing and had to stop four times to walk a wee bit in miles 2 through 4, splits were: 7:43, 8:02 and 7:58. Prem caught up with me around mile 4 or so. I tried to stay with him and almost caught him at mile 7. My splits were: 8:00, 7:49, 7:58 and 7:01 over the last 0.55 miles. Prem held me off and finished 3 seconds ahead. I went up to Stewart Lodge for some well earned post race food. I had just a banana and a bit of ravioli. Another reader of this blog introduced himself. He said that he had been reading my blogs for a couple of years. Three readers have introduced themselves at or near Stewart Lodge since November!

This picture was taken by Heather Bailey Ostrander just yards from the finish

Officially, I finished in 58:36, well off my 2012 PR on this course of 53:26 (it was also a lot warmer back in 2012 too). I was 82th out of 359, link here. I was 5th out of 35 in my M55-59 age group, link here. Mark Herberger, Bill Beyerbach and I stayed for a while and talked running. Mark is so much more scientific about his running. Me ... I point myself straight ahead and run by feel.

Soon enough I was home. My darling Christine and I spent the rest of the day quietly. We had our usual coffee and bagel for lunch. Later Christine cooked up a dish called cheeseburger casserole. Tomorrow was a workday so it was to bed at midnight like usual.

Thursday, 1/2/2014: Rest day due to snow, cold and wind

Eight inches of light and fluffy snow fell overnight. It continued snowing, the temperature fell and the wind kicked up during the day. The wind chill was below zero by nightfall. I so wanted to be a badass runner and go out for a run after work but the sub zero wind chills put the botch on that idea.

Friday, 1/3/2013: Rest day.

I brushed off another couple of snow off our car. All was well until I uncovered the right rear and noticed that the taillight was busted. I did more than a bit of swearing. I also noticed that the car was at angle when I knew that I had pulled in straight the night before. I left a message for Michelle, the apartment manager, and left for work. Michelle called me back and insisted that the plow guy examined his truck and found no damage and asked if I remembered any strange noises during the night. I remember that the plow guy was plowing the driveway at 5AM when I woke up to find Christine still on the couch. Christine said that she vaguely remembered hearing a noise last night between midnight and 5AM. What a way to start a Friday!

Let's see ... taillight assembly, right rear quarter (pounded out) and rear bumper (under the snow)

The car was pushed about a foot

I just stayed in after I got home from work. The traffic around Seneca was all tied up so I didn't want to add a runner to the mix. Tomorrow, a run definitely and positively ... long. So very much needed.

Saturday, 1/4/2013: 7.7 miles, 1:06:36, 8:38 pace, 19F, 41% RH, sunny, wind chill 5F.

My darling Christine surprised me by getting up early. I didn't get out until after 9:30 AM. It had warmed up over night. It was 1F when we went to bed and 19F when I got out of bed at 8AM. I was in a quandary about what to wear so I settled on my CW-X tights, heaviest long sleeve tech, jacket, heavy running gloves and beanie.

Garmin Connect Activity for Out to the zoo and 4 times around the pond

I headed out and found that some of the snow was slush and that there was almost no shoulder to run on Seneca Ave. So I quickly headed onto Collingwood and over to the Seneca Park Zoo. There was roads were plowed and snow covered. I headed down to the pond and just ran around it 4 times. It was nice and quiet down there with almost no traffic. Oh, it's 1.05 miles around the pond on the road in case anyone was wondering.

Elsewhere, about 180 runners were out doing the Frozen Assets 5K, a snowshoe race out at Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area south of Honeoye NY. Here are some news links, here and here.

Not too much happened the rest of the day. Christine and I did make it out before night fell. She went to New Nails to get her white tip nails filled (excellent job as always) and I hit Wegmans for groceries. It's amazing how a bout of temperature in the single digits makes 30F seem warm!

2013, the year in review

2013, the year in review ... where to begin?

My right Achilles that I aggravated during a run way back on July 29th, 2012 gradually healed. Yes, I tried rehab with little success. I even tried no running for two weeks twice. Eventually, I just ran anyway ... just slower and not as long. I stretched it out before every run for most of the year. I just stopped thinking about it around July ... about a year later.

Yes, I have a black toenail like almost every runner!

Well, let's have the stats. I ran 1310.6 miles this year, 225 runs in 365 days, 5.8 miles/run. The breakdown by month: January - 108.3, Feburary - 107.4, March - 140.0, April - 65.2, May - 91.2, June - 103.4, July - 81.7, August - 154.0, September - 134.3, October - 101.2, November - 116.7 and December - 107.2, 9 out of 12 months over 100 miles. The most miles was August when I was training for the Rochester Marathon in September. Wow ... 1310.6 miles ... my most running miles during a year ever.  Some of these runs were warmup runs before or cooldown runs after races. My handy dandy running spreadsheet shows that I have run 7969.7 miles, 1307 runs in 2665 days, 6.1 miles/run since September 14th, 2006 when I started it.

I ran 51 races this year with 354.4 racing miles. So 27% of my running miles this year were during races. The breakdown of my races was 26 street (11 5Ks, 1 5M, 5 10Ks, 1 6.42M, 1 12K, 1 7.5M, 2 15Ks, 1 20K , 2 Halfs, 1 Full) and 25 trail (longest was 50K). Why so many races? I like to get out there and compete ... pure and simple. My race spreadsheet shows that I have run 247 races since my first race on Thanksgiving 2005 in Newark NY, the Newark Turkey Day 5 Mile race.

My running highlights this year were running in my first Boilermaker in July, running my second Rochester Marathon in September and running my first ultramarathon in November. The Boilermaker was my first race with thousands and thousands of runners. I was so excited that I couldn't sleep the night before. The Rochester Marathon was my first marathon since the hot and humid Rochester in 2008. I hit my goal of running under 4 hours (3:51:59). My first ultramarathon was the Mendon Ponds Trail Run 50K. The fickle November weather produced a light rain that became a downpour during the race. I continued onward and finished in 6:34:37. Some other highlights were running my fastest 5K of 2013, a 20:44 in the Photofinish 5K (31 seconds off my lifetime PR in 2012) and my fastest 12K ever, a 59:23 in the Summerfest 12K.

All in all, 2013 was a great running year! Yes, I'm 56 ... but my legs still feel young and are raring to go!

What's in store for 2014? Well ... I really should cross train. I know I have said and typed this before but I really should drag my ass out to LA Fitness and do something else to build my core. Yes ... there will be more races in 2014, it's how I roll.

Sunday, 12/22/2013 to Saturday, 12/28/2013

I ran 4 times this week, 27.5 miles.

Sunday, 12/22/2013: 2 miles out in OH

My darling Christine and I woke up down in Streetsboro OH. The pool at the Comfort Inn and Suites we were staying overnight at was closed and the "exercise room" had only a stepper hauled up against a wall. Well ... it was 57F outside (back in Rochester it was 32F) so I just went outside and went for a run without any GPS, phone or RoadID. I could have used MapMyRun.com if I had my iPhone. So I just made up a route and ran. It felt good. I checked out the route on Mapmyrun.com and saw that it was what I thought ... 2 miles.

A shower and breakfast hit the spot. We checked out and soon we were visiting Christine's father in nearby Ravenna. Her brother, Bill, and his wife, Patty, stopped by for a bit.

Christine's father, Christine and I

We all went out for lunch at a nearby Cracker Barrel in Rootstown OH. Tasty just like yesterday. We also saw her daughter, Beth, and her boyfriend, Nick, in Cleveland. Christine also talked with her son, John, while we were on our way back to Rochester.

Monday, 12/23/2013: Rest day.

Well ... technically not a rest day. Christine and I watched Christmas movies; "A Princess for Christmas", "A Christmas Wish" and "A Christmas Wedding Tail" from the Hallmark Channel courtesy of the DVR while I did 6 loads of laundry. My darling Christine sorted them for me and I did the rest ... except she put her clothes away.

Tuesday, 12/24/2013: Another rest day.

I thought about running but Christine and I watched some Hallmark Channel Christmas movies "Dear Santa" and "Holly's Holiday" instead.

Wednesday, 12/25/2013: 9.3 miles, 1:19:07, 8:30 pace, 10F, 92% RH, wind chill 2F, partly cloudy, a cold breeze.

Garmin Connect Activity for 15K on Christmas Morning

I hadn't run in three days so I needed to run. It was a bit cold so I put on an extra short sleeve tech over my long sleeve tech. I got out around 10AM and took it nice and easy. The roads were OK. The main roads had a slushy shoulder, the side streets were snow covered, the sidewalks had two inches of snow. I wore my road shoes which didn't have much traction. I didn't make any sudden turns so I was OK. My splits were: 8:15, 8:27, 8:17, 8:21, 8:48, 8:54, 8:35, 8:41, 8:22 and 8:05. I enjoyed the peace, quiet and solitude out on the road ... but I was glad that I got my run in. I only have about 30 miles until I have 1300 running miles in 2013. Definitely something to shoot for before the end of 2013.

My darling Christine watched six, yes six, Christmas movies off the DVR from the Lifetime and Hallmark channels: "The Santa Switch", "The Thanksgiving House", The Marsh Sisters at Christmas", "The Christmas Spirit", "A Very Merry Mix-Up", and "The Snow Bride". We did manage to eat a Christmas dinner of turkey loaf, sweet potato and cranberry sauce along with cherry pie .... yummy!

Thursday, 12/26/2013: Rest day ... not much to say.

Friday, 12/27/2013: 10 miles, 1:19:53, 8:11 pace, 30F, night, partly cloudy, a slight wind.

Garmin Connect Activity for 10 miles around the neighborhood

I needed to run. I had my usual pre-run bowl of cereal and dilly-dallied for a bit. But I said "This run won't get done by itself" and out I went. I struck up a nice and easy pace made faster but Seneca being clear. The side streets and sidewalks were still snow covered. But I kept up a pretty good clip the entire run. My splits were: 8:10, 8:06, 8:14, 8:05, 8:02, 8:23, 8:14, 8:03 and 8:30. I ventured a bit farther on this run as I went down into the flats and back. A nice run.

Saturday, 12/28/2013: 6.2 miles, 50:54, 8:12 pace, 40F, night, partly cloudy, calm

Garmin Connect Activity for 10K around the neighborhood

I need to run again ... so I headed out around dusk. It was a bit warmer during the day so I wore my road shoes. I took up a nice and easy pace on the main roads but I was a bit surprised by seeing the icy twinkles in my headlamp of ice just starting to form on the side streets. I started to slip a bit when I pushed off so I had to shorten my steps. I did shorten my run a bit to just a 10K rather than a 10 mile run. My splits were: 8:16, 8:14, 8:32, 8:17, 8:10, 7:57 and 7:14 over the last 0.2 mile. I did enjoy the run and stayed upright.

I found that I already had 1300 running miles for 2013 but was just shy of 100 miles for the month. I hadn't adjusted my spreadsheet to include my last two runs.